Author
Topic: Artist at Large: Will draw for toys (Read 5130 times)

I thought it was about time to share some of my stuph. I know, Matt; "Where's that frickin' sandcrawler?!" It's coming, I swear.

These are some older pieces I did just for the heck of it. First up is a design for a Concept Darth Vader figure from the art of Ralph McQuarrie. As you can tell by the date, I've been wanting this little guy since '97. Maybe someday.

Then there's this Tessek illo I did as a digital color experiment. Not my best work, but it was fun and the first time I drew this particular character,

Keep 'em coming! If you keep posting other pictures of your artwork, I'll stop nagging you so much for the Sandcrawler one. In fact, I've already fussed about that one so much, that at this point there's probably no way it could ever live up to all the hype!

Wish I could give you some kind of helpful constructive criticisms, but they look just perfect to me. I really like the nice "clean" style they were made in. Appeals greatly to my meticulous nature...

I love that original McQuarrie concept art as well, especially his early work from ANH. So send along that Vader shot and a couple others to Hasbro, and tell them to get to work!

Keep 'em coming! If you keep posting other pictures of your artwork, I'll stop nagging you so much for the Sandcrawler one. In fact, I've already fussed about that one so much, that at this point there's probably no way it could ever live up to all the hype!

True. Scott hyped it to me originally, and now that I've asked for it so many times, and you've promised it so many times, it's all hyped up now... See? The hype actually surrounds the viewing of the piece now, and not so much the piece itself anymore. But now that the piece is so hyped, it'll be disappointing if it doesn't live up to all the hype, even if you never really hyped the piece to begin with. If Scott wasn't so damned hyper in the first place, there wouldn't be so much hype and anticipation now, which is growing with each and every post we make about it. It also grows each time we type the word "hype", which I just did about nineteen times.

So what I'm saying John, is that your little Sandcrawler/figure case concept drawing better be damned good, or I'll never believe all the hype about any of your artwork again. Understand? Good. Now show me some more stuph, before I get even more hyper...

So how are you with drawing the human characters/likenesses? Pretty good, or do you prefer to stick more to the droids/aliens/creatures/costumed type of people? Like, say could you do a dorky fanboy up proud with a nice Slave Leia, Arena Padme and/or Aayla Secura? I'll have to ponder more what would be a fun idea...

So approximately how many current figures would you need to be pimped for an average drawing? Or colored print? I'm just talking small sized stuff here - 8 1/2 x 11ish. Feel free to PM me with details.

Looks good to me, though you're technically getting away with a likeness that we have no realistic reference point for.

What about several characters together in the same picture? Is that do-able? Obviously that's more labor intensive, and would therefore require more figures, but that's an idea I'm pondering somewhat...

Really nice illustrations MisterPL. I see where your Trek costume design talent comes from now! So is this just a hobby of yours, or does it pay the bills? Definitely a great talent to possess either way. Wish I could do that. Hopefully you'll show off some more here soon!

have you ever tried to get a job or freelance with Hasbro? (I'm serious)

Ever since I saw a copy of The Art of Star Wars in 1978 and realized I could make money doing that, I wanted to be an artist for Lucasfilm. I had a chance to work there prior to Episode I, but the timing wasn't right. I kicked myself a bit for not doing it, but once I saw the creative direction Lucas had in mind for the Prequels (which was considerably different from what I'd expected), it definitely worked out for the better. I don't know if I'd have lasted as long as Doug Chiang.

Then I had an opportunity to work for Kenner in Cincinnati. I applied, as did a friend of mine. He got the job and was let go when Hasbro closed the doors a year and a half later. He was single and relatively nomadic and struggled to bounce back by relying on freelance illustration before he found full-time work. I had a wife and child and probably wouldn't have fared as well.

I also had an "in" at Disney's Orlando animation studio a few years ago. We all know what happened with that. Even the veterans were let go thanks to Disney's downsizing and emphasis of CG over 2-D animation.

It's interesting how my plans to work at Lucasfilm, Kenner, and Disney have been thwarted, but to my favor. I'm a lot happier knowing I've got steady work and can do the occasional freelance job as I please without having to uproot my family.